Underground Power

The City of Nedlands continues to install underground power across the City with the completion of the West Hollywood project.

The projects in Claremont Triangle and Alfred Road (Town of Claremont project) and Alderbury Street, Floreat (Town of Cambridge project) are now progressing and close to completion.

When these projects are complete 78.5% of the City will have underground power installed to their properties, with a remaining 1,707 properties without underground power in East Hollywood, Floreat and Mt Claremont areas.

The City is now progressing with investigations on progressing the installation of underground power in these remaining properties.

Visit the newsfeeds and read the information on this engagement page to find out progress.

How can you get involved, find out more or provide feedback?

Anyone can comment on the underground power projects within the City of Nedlands. You can participate by:

If not already register, please do so on the "Register to get involved" tab on this page

Reading the frequently asked questions (FAQs) for further information.

Opportunities to provide feedback on the projects will be available at key stages of the development of further projects.

All feedback and updates on the project will occur on in the 'Newsfeeds' on this engagement page.

The City of Nedlands continues to install underground power across the City with the completion of the West Hollywood project.

The projects in Claremont Triangle and Alfred Road (Town of Claremont project) and Alderbury Street, Floreat (Town of Cambridge project) are now progressing and close to completion.

When these projects are complete 78.5% of the City will have underground power installed to their properties, with a remaining 1,707 properties without underground power in East Hollywood, Floreat and Mt Claremont areas.

The City is now progressing with investigations on progressing the installation of underground power in these remaining properties.

Visit the newsfeeds and read the information on this engagement page to find out progress.

How can you get involved, find out more or provide feedback?

Anyone can comment on the underground power projects within the City of Nedlands. You can participate by:

If not already register, please do so on the "Register to get involved" tab on this page

When do you think you might undertake putting underground power into the area that is joined by the Town of Cambridge and the City of Subiaco as now the small forgotten pocket of Floreat is going to continue with the inconvenience of Power outages and replacement of poles once again losing our power for 8 hours again.
The rest of the area has it which does seem ridiculous my own home has underground power connection to my home and has done for 30 years yet 4 houses down the street is overhead wires and so the lose of power is frequent.

AET
asked
6 months ago

Thank you for your question. The
earliest possible installation of underground power to the rest of Floreat will
be in 2023 subject to support of Western Power and Council.

Can you please advise me of the progress of underground power for Mayfair Street, Mount Claremont? When are you proposing to initiate planning for this area of Mount Claremont?
Who from the council should I be liaising with?
Thank you,
Amber Banfield
31 Mayfair Street, Mount Claremont
ph: 0407770270
email: amber.banfield@worleyparsons.com

Amber
asked
9 months ago

With respect to having underground power installed
in the remainder of the City of Nedlands, the City is planning to complete the
balance of the undergrounding of the remaining aerial systems as part of the
ten year financial plan. Consequently, it is anticipated that the works will be
completed during the next decade however the exact timing for each area has yet
to be determined.

When will there be underground power for Portland St Nedlands?

Christina
asked
9 months ago

With respect to having underground power installed
in the remainder of the City of Nedlands, the City is planning to complete the
balance of the undergrounding of the remaining aerial systems as part of the
ten year financial plan. Consequently, it is anticipated that the works will be
completed during the next decade however the exact timing for each area has yet
to be determined.

Will underground power be added to Grovedale Road Floreat. The section which falls under the City of Nedlands. Have asked this question before but received no responses

Kylie
asked
10 months ago

With
respect to Grovedale Road, Floreat/Boronia Avenue, Nedlands, the City has
planned to complete the balance of the under grounding of the remaining aerial
systems as part of the ten year financial plan including Floreat, Mt Claremont
and East Hollywood. Consequently, it is anticipated that the works will be
completed during the next decade however the exact timing for each area has yet
to be determined.

Is Boronia avenue planned to have underground power - we live on the corner of Boronia and Karelia?

James Edis
asked
11 months ago

With
respect to Grovedale Road, Floreat/Boronia Avenue, Nedlands, the City has
planned to complete the balance of the under grounding of the remaining aerial
systems as part of the ten year financial plan including Floreat, Mt Claremont
and East Hollywood. Consequently, it is anticipated that the works will be
completed during the next decade however the exact timing for each area has yet
to be determined.

Underground power in old Mt Claremont is there a timetable for this? It is very windy in this area and gets a lot of storm weather from the coast why is Hollywood area going ahead while this area is left with old infrastructure?

Sue Lewis
asked
about 1 year ago

The
Council is currently considering the draft ten year financial plan which
includes provision for completion of almost all of the properties in Nedlands
which still haven’t been serviced with underground power. The decision on which
area would be completed first (Mt Claremont, East Hollywood, Floreat), has yet
to be made although it is recognised that the existing power infrastructure in
Mt Claremont is older and consequently a higher priority for replacement by
Western Power.

Hello
We live in Kingston st, nedlands. We seem to have missed out on underground power - are we EVER likely to have this on our street?

Christine Tan
asked
almost 2 years ago

Thank you for your question. The
Hollywood Underground Power Project (West) provides a new model for delivering
underground power projects outside the previous State Underground Power Program
(SUPP). If this model is supported by both the Council and Western Power, then
it could be utilised to complete the rest of the City of Nedlands.

I see that property owners in the Hollywood project area were to receive a letter from the City outlining the proposal and the estimated cost for each property (including any discounts that may be applicable) together with a short survey. I live in Hollywood and assume I am within the project area, yet did not receive the letter or survey form.

Barc
asked
almost 2 years ago

Thank you for your question. Can you please contact the City's Director Technical Services (Martyn Glover 9273 3500) in relation to not receiving the survey. We need to know your address to determine if you are in the project area.

However, not all of Hollywood is included in this proposal, only the area is generally bounded by Loftus Street to Carrington Street, Dalkieth Road and Stirling Highway. Please refer to the document library to view the detailed design which shows the lots within this proposal.

To what extent will the proposed underground power lines disrupt the verge lawns/gardens. Will the turf or plants be replaced? For example, should we expect a metre wide trench perpendicular to the street to run through the verge? To what extent would any access trench be required on a property? Also, how long will the disruption last - days or weeks for a particular house and street?

Ian
asked
almost 2 years ago

Thank you for your question. The
underground power is installed using horizontal boring techniques. This
involves a drilling rig which bores horizontally between a series of excavated
pits.

The pits are generally around 100 metres apart, therefore the risk of
excavation damage within the nature strip (verge) to any one property is
minimised. Similar techniques using a smaller rig are used to access the
private property

It is only where these techniques cannot be used that the
cable is trenched. It is anticipated that the whole project will take between
six to nine months to complete. Generally the disruption to any one property
would not exceed two weeks.

Hi, I am a little confused with respect to the areas being covered under the plan. The project is being referred to as the Hollywood underground power project but it isn't clear if the whole ward is in the plan. In a community information leaflet sent in 2014 there is a map which names the various areas that remain without power. In this communication the part of Hollywood ward east of Dalkeith Rd is labelled as Hollywood. Now, looking at the detailed design it appears that only the part of Hollywood ward west of Smyth Rd is included (largely what was previously referred to as Nedlands). Can you please clarify what is covered in the project? If it isn't all of Hollywood ward then what is the plan for those areas not covered now and can you explain why it isn't being completed as a single project?

John K
asked
almost 2 years ago

The consultation conducted in 2014 was for State Underground
Power Projects which included the whole of the Hollywood ward. The current
project is a City sponsored project taking advantage of works proposed by
Western Power. Consequently Western Power have set the boundary which is
bound by Carrington Street (north) to Stirling Highway (south) and Loftus
Street (west) to Dalkeith Road (east). In retrospect maybe the project
should have been called Hollywood West.

The current project is a trial of a new
funding model to deliver underground power to the rest of the City
currently without it. If the current project is successful, it is
anticipated that Council will support an extension to the other 1600
properties over a period of years.

What is your plan for implementing underground power for the rest of Nedlands ratepayers who are not in the Hollywood precinct and still have overhead power? I have asked this question and provided suggestions several times to the City of Nedlands but have had limited response. Regards, Amber Banfield. 31 Mayfair Street

Amber
asked
almost 2 years ago

The current 600 property project is a trial of a new
funding model to deliver underground power to the rest of the City
currently without underground power. If the current project is successful, it is
anticipated that Council will support an extension to the other 1600
properties over a period of years.

Q1 Will there be additional costs to me for connecting my house to the underground power.
That is, currently the house in Broome St is connected by a traditional power line from the pole in the street to the house and subsequently to the meter box.
Given the power line from the underground cable in the street to my house will have to be underground and up into the meter box on the porch, ........what additional costs will be incurred by me (that is additional to the cost quoted of $5799.12 plus or minus 10%) to get the power connected from the street to the house.
Q 2.What are the implications of me returning your survey with a Yes response...........and what processes will you be undertaking if you get a majority agreement to your proposal.
Q3. What impact will this decision have on the current rates and future rates you are charging on my property given the value of the block and or property will likely rise and when will these likely costs be imposed on me as a rate payer.
Q4. Will all the current power lines and coax cables be placed underground in Broome St and will this result in only a new modern steel/aluminium street pole with a lamp on it being visible in the street.

Graeme
asked
almost 2 years ago

Thank you for your question. We respond as follows:

Q1. The
estimate quoted plus or minus 10% is inclusive of all works including
connection to the power board. There is no additional cost unless the
electrician identifies that the power board is unsafe.

Q2. If the Council is satisfied with the community response, it is expected that
they will agree to progress the project with Western Power. WP will then tender
the project and accept a winning bid. Once this is known the landowners will be
advised of the final contribution and given the choice to pay in one instalment
or equal annual payments over a ten year period. The City will then issue
service charge notices. It is hoped that the project could be complete by June
2018.

Q3. It is recognised that underground power contributes to improved values of
property. In Nedlands this will no doubt be the same although land value in
Nedlands is already high so the improvement is not likely to be significant.
The Valuer General revalues property across the State every three years. This
year is a valuation year and we are advised that valuations have dropped which
may result in a reduction in rates for some ratepayers. Because the next
valuation is three years away the impact, if any, won't be realised until then.

Q4. All powerlines will be placed underground and the poles carrying them will be
removed. There will be new steel street light poles at approximately every 60m
along the road and it is anticipated that these will be fitted with the new LED
lighting technology which will realise up to a 70% reduction in power costs to
run the street lights.

I am reading the Detailed Design, and as I'm not an electrical engineer I'm finding it hard to understand the map provided. Can you please tell me in non-engineer language the following:
1 - what is a "pillar"?
2 - what is the difference between a "uni pillar" and a "mini pillar"?
3 - a property at the north end of Robinson St has a marking "Note 1", however this is not marked on the map. What is "Note 1" to the map?

RichardA
asked
almost 2 years ago

Thank you for your question. Our response is:

The pillar is the green dome located at the front of
the property.

A mini pillar is the standard size pillar which has
four possible connections and generally services two properties, one
street light and one redundant connection (future use) while the uni
pillar is a larger version (about twice the width, same height) and is
used where more connections are required.

Note 1 is to change the existing mini pillar to a uni
pillar. This is to service three feeder cables, three properties and
possibly two street lights.

Can you tell me why our underground power is going to cost us so much. Why is it not CPI indexed. Why are we, the last ward, being descriminated against.

Pamela d
asked
almost 2 years ago

Thank you for your question. The Hollywood Underground Power Program is a City
sponsored project and is not part of the State Underground Power Program
(SUPP). Consequently the contribution from the State Government is less
and CPI could not apply. The City has made every effort to keep the price
down which is reflected in the reduction from the originally anticipated
$8,500 to an average household contribution less than $6,000. The Council
has decided to use this approach because it has been unsuccessful in the
past three rounds of SUPP and the current selection criteria would not
support a program in Hollywood for the next 15 years.

Why is the Hollywood ward going to be desriminated against with such a massive increase in the cost of underground power. We, my husband and I, are not in the slightest bit interest in underground power at$15,000+. Dalkeith paid $3,500. I am only prepared to pay that with CPI indexation. This is totally unfair and my salary has not quadrupled I. The last 20 years. And I doubt anyone Else's has. With technology this cost should have come down

Pamela d
asked
about 2 years ago

Thank you for your question. The consultation letter includes the actual contribution for each property owner including any discounts associated with existing underground connection or pensioner/senior status. It also advises where the contribution could be deferred as is the case with rates.

Hello Martyn, Maria, Caroline,
I refer to the last Council agenda where discounts were discussed for service charges. Could you please explain what is meant by "Partial Standard"? Is that where the current connection is overhead to a privately owned consumer pole then underground to the house without a pillar? Diagrams of the different scenarios would be helpful for ratepayers to understand network and service charges.
Thanks and regards
Andrew Mangano

Andrew Mangano
asked
about 2 years ago

Thank you for your question. A partial standard underground connection to a house is where the connection is to a pole without a pillar.

Following up from the question below about the detailed design estimate being made public as part of the second consultation phase why is there is no disclosure now on 'Your Voice' regarding this estimate? Has the Council not approved the disclosure of the estimate on 'Your Voice' ?

cmlacy
asked
almost 2 years ago

Thank you for your question. The detailed design estimate remains commercial-in-confidence because it is subject to a tender process.

Can the Council please advise if the reduction in Western Power's cost estimate is only due to a larger subsidy from them based on the benefits they accrue from burying powerlines or also due to a reduction in the margins they typically attribute to underground power projects outside of the State Underground Power Program?

cmlacy
asked
almost 2 years ago

Thank you for your question. Western Power have not provided details on the make-up of the subsidy at this stage.

We'd like to know if the Council proposes to publish on 'Your Voice' the detailed design estimate (+/- 10%) from Western Power when it becomes available, and before the second consultation process on the HUPP.

cmlacy
asked
about 2 years ago

The detailed estimate will be made public as part of
the second consultation subject to Council approval.

The cost for underground power is described as $8,500 per property owner per allotment. How is an allotment defined? How does it work in cases of subdivisions? Would network costs be shared between owners?
Many thanks
top of page

Richard
asked
about 2 years ago

An allotment is defined as a single cadastral
surveyed block. Therefore the allotment for a strata titled property may
include numerous premises.

Thank you for the response which is a little disingenuous. As I understand it for the three rounds of underground power installations to date the ratepayer contribution in 1998 was $2250, in 2003 was $2450 and in 2006 was $2915. If $8500 is to be the contribution after eleven years since 2006 that is an almost 3 fold increase. Truly?
You do seem to have missed the boat in 2003 when Councillor Bell's concept with estimates of $2500 to $2880 were envisaged. Even at twice that cost it would have been a reasonable deal.
Andrew Burke

Andrew Burke
asked
over 2 years ago

Dear Andrew,

The cost provided in the survey was the estimate provided by Western
Power for a client funded project in 2014 and not a quotation for a State
Underground Power Project as was the case in the past. The City has contracted
Western Power to complete the detailed design and a quotation for the project
and this is anticipated to be available at the end of April. The Council will
review this in consideration of the survey results and a second survey limited
to a single question specific to the actual cost with respect to each
individual’s property may result.

Hi there, has Meriwa Street been included in the 475 lots within the Hollywood Ward area, and what was the outcome of the most recent survey within this catchment to progress with underground power?

Tyrone Stott
asked
over 2 years ago

We apologise for the delay in responding. Unfortunately Meriwa Street is
not included in the current Hollywood Underground Power Project. With respect
to the survey conducted in 2014, a street by street analysis was not conducted. However, the key results were as follows:

There were 1,062
responses to the 2,595 surveys (41%)

53% of the
respondents considered underground power important

76% of these
respondents considered improved amenity as the main reason

Only 25% advised
they would be willing to pay the full cost ($17,000)

58% of these
respondents advised they would prefer to pay in instalments

There was no
question on willingness to pay half in the 2014 survey

The
City will report to Council in April 2017 on the results of the most recent
survey.

This is the third time we have been surveyed on underground power. The questions have remained the same and our answers have not changed.
It would appear that the results of the previous surveys are not to your liking but that’s democracy. You sought our opinion and we answered the same way each time. Three surveys asking the same questions is a waste of ratepayers money.
To reiterate; we are not prepared to pay $8500 let alone $17,000. We should not be treated differently to ratepayers in other wards.
So the questions are ‘How much have other Nedlands ratepayers paid for their underground connection, and why can’t we pay an equivalent amount?’

Andrew Burke
asked
over 2 years ago

The
ratepayers of the City of Nedlands who don’t have underground power have
indicated to the City via the Community Strategic Planning process that
provision of underground power is a priority, consequently the City will
continue to explore options to deliver on this direction including this most
recent opportunity.

With
respect to the cost, it is nineteen years since the first project commenced in
1998. The contribution at this time was based on the installation cost at the
time and the design was in accordance with the standards at the same time.
Since then the costs have increased due to inflation and the standards have
improved with respect to public safety and risk minimisation. No doubt this
trend will continue into the future.

The
individual contribution by Nedlands ratepayers in projects to date has been 50%
of the individual property cost less any discounts associated with pension
status, property type and existing power infrastructure. In 1998 the
undiscounted contribution was $2,250. In 2017 the estimate is $8,500.

Is the approximate cost of $17,000 applicable to every block, regardless of its size, noting that some are in the vicinity of 1000 square metres or have not been subdivided, versus some that can be from 300 - 500 square metres in area? Leith

Paganoni
asked
over 2 years ago

The cost of the
individual contribution is based initially on the maximum power draw of a
property included in the network design by Western Power. Therefore single
residences, duplex and triplex properties have the same contribution while developments
of higher density have reduced contributions.

Similarly commercial and
government properties have individually calculated contributions. For example
there is a sewer pump station in Carrington Street owned by the Water
Corporation. The cost for this site, although quite small in size, is high due
to the power demand of the sewer pumps. This cost is met totally by Water
Corporation without any contribution by the City of Nedlands.

Why is the cost to the Hollywood area, more than other Nedlands residence have paid. Why was Hollywood residents who were quoted less than $2k over 12 years ago, deferred to 2017 and bring asked for $15k more! The city of Subiaco looked at total cost for all it's residence, asked each rate payer for the same funds and invested the money until funds were needed for each distric of Subiaco to have it's power put underground. It was a fair and equal system for all the rate payers than the damatically increase across Nedlands depending on new quotes and funding now. Why should Hollywood need to pay so much more than other areas of Nedlands.

Poppet
asked
over 2 years ago

The $2k you refer to from previous programs was actually 50% of the
actual cost which is then directly compared to the $8,500 estimate in the
survey. The City of Subiaco was a leader in the introduction of underground
power establishing a reserve fund specifically for these projects approximately
25 years ago with approximately 1% of rates being accumulated in this fund each
year.

It
is unfortunate that other Local Governments did not follow the lead at the time
however there was an overwhelming mandate from rate payers that Western Power
and the State Government should be responsible for the total cost. In consideration
of this the State Government of the time introduced the State Underground Power
Program (SUPP) with initially a pilot program followed by six rounds of SUPP
since.

Since
1998 the City has been successful on three occasions up to and including Round
3 and despite submitting quality projects for rounds 4 to 6 has been
unsuccessful since.

The
most recent community strategic plan identified the completion of the underground
power across the City at the highest priority and the City, having failed to
secure a SUPP project, is exploring options to fulfil the strategic direction.
Unfortunately this will always come at a cost. The values quoted in the survey
are estimates only, once the City has received a formal quote (expected soon)
then the potential participants can be advised of the actual cost per property
including discounts for building class, pension status and existing underground
infrastructure.

1 What happens in the case of a multi unit property where some customers qualify for seniors discount and some do not?
2 Can I email my response as I do not have the envelope provided?

Margaret Walsh
asked
over 2 years ago

Based on previous underground power projects conducted in the City,
there will be a discount applied to multi-unit complexes which acknowledges
that the complex as a whole has a reduced impact on the power network.

The
Council has requested that the Administration report to them in April 2017
providing an appropriate financial model, the actual quotation for the works
and the results of the community consultation.

The property owners within the
project will be advised of the outcome of this including the individual
contributions as soon as its available.

There was a survey with a reply date of May 23, 2014 done in the Mt Claremont area re having underground power.I have closely followed this issue for 27 years but may not have kept the response. Could you please advise if we were informed in the same manner (letters to the residents) of the outcome of this survey? Can you please tell me now what was the result of this survey? Was there a Council decision to act on the Survey? Was there a detailed design drawn up? Further modelling done? A second and final survey done? These outcomes were outlined in the "What happens next?" Section of the Survey.
Recent activity in the Hollywood area leads me to believe it is an opportune time for the Council to
bring the whole of Nedlands to the same standard of services.

Jan Mac
asked
over 2 years ago

As a consequence of the previous survey conducted by the City in 2014, the
City applied for all remaining above ground power areas (3) in the City to be
included in the State Underground Power Program (SUPP). Unfortunately the
Minister for Energy advised on Friday that the City had been unsuccessful with
all three projects.

Attached are links to the documents that were placed on the City website to
inform the survey participants.

With respect to the current survey, the project
is an actual offer by Western Power to participate so all property owners
within the project will be advised in writing of the outcomes. In consideration
of the unsuccessful SUPP application, the City may consider this new
opportunity as the model to complete the undergrounding of power through out
the City of Nedlands in a more acceptable time period.

The links to the previous survey, the results and the information brochure follow:

Hi, in the past few weeks contractors have been installing underground electric cable in Karella Street (from east of Smyth Road), Dalkeith Road, Carrington Street (towards Loftus Street). What are these works for and is this preparatory works for underground power?

TimothyTucak
asked
over 2 years ago

The current upgrade works being conducted by Western Power are not
part of the proposed Hollywood Underground Power Project (HUPP), they are part
of a program to upgrade the network from 6.6Kv to 11Kv as well as reinforcing
the power distribution throughout the Western Suburbs.

The
City was made aware of this program late last year and has managed to tap into
the opportunity to include nearby residences in subsequent projects including
the HUPP however the works that you currently see happening had already been
awarded to the contractor so needed to go ahead. This information was provided
in the Council report of 20 December 2017.

Our complex has seven units with has one power distributing point coming into this property.
What would the cost be to each unit owner.

Monika Flynn
asked
over 2 years ago

Based on previous underground
power projects conducted in the City, there will be a discount applied to
multi-unit complexes which acknowledges that the complex as a whole has a
reduced impact on the power network

The Council has requested that the
Administration report to them in April 2017 providing an appropriate financial
model, the actual quotation for the works and the results of the community
consultation. The property owners within the project will be advised of the
outcome of this including the individual contributions as soon as its
available.

Will this include Kirwan st floreat

Roger
asked
over 2 years ago

Unfortunately
Kirwan Street, Floreat is not included in either the Hollywood Underground
Power Project or the Town of Cambridge’s State Underground Power Program
project which includes the south side of Alderbury Street only.

The City will
however continue to pursue opportunities to underground power throughout the
City including Kirwan Street into the future.

The Council minutes at December 2016 state that the current cost for underground power is $14,500 per lot, however Council is going to a community survey with a cost of $17,000 per lot. Why are landowners being asked to fund $8,500 towards the total cost of $14,500? If the final cost is below $17,000 do landowners get a refund for any overpayment?

RichardA
asked
over 2 years ago

The
cost to install the underground power at $14,500 quoted in the Council Report
of December 2016 was based on the estimate provided by Western Power. In the
past the estimates from Western Power have not been reliable so the City
Administration decided to use the price previously stated in the 2014 survey at
$17,000.

The
City will receive a formal quotation from Western Power in the ensuing months
and then, once the financial model has been confirmed, the City will be able to
clarify the actual cost for a single residential service as well as the other
types of service. The members of the Hollywood project will be advised of the
actual cost as soon as this is confirmed.

Good morning
In relation to the Key Dates - has the Council been advised as to the success of their application being short-listed?
It sounds like the cost to a home owner for underground power ($12400 and recent copy of Post) is considerable. Will the affected residents be given a further say as to their willingness to finance this project?
Thanks
JB

JMB
asked
over 2 years ago

Thank you for your question. The City of Nedlands is still awaiting an announcement from the Minister for Energy on the City's proposals.

Should the City of Nedland's proposals be successful, the cost of underground
power will be divided against the number of allotments in the proposed area, e.g. the
more allotments to divide the cost against the lower the average cost to the
individual.

As with previous underground power projects, a range of payment
options would be available. Holders of various concession cards would be
subject to rebates at various percentages for example, the WA Seniors Card up to 25 percent, the Pensioner Concession Card up to 50 fifty percent, or entitled to defer payment. These rebates
are paid by the State Government.

The City of Nedlands is still waiting on an announcement from the Minister for Energy in relation to the City's proposals. As a result, the City is unable to provide more accurate costings as these are yet to be
determined pending the success of our submissions

This engagement page is updated on a regular basis and all
information is added as soon as it comes to hand.

Morning,
The contractor did not reinstate the lawn on the verge and damaged the reticulation. Would be grateful if you can advise who I should call to ensure the damages are fixed and the lawn is reinstated.
Thanks
Jianguo ZHANG
85 Smyth Rd

Jianguo Zhang
asked
over 2 years ago

Thank you for your question. Western Power have contractors, Cape Utilities undertaking this work. Please contact them as below.

Can you please provide data and supporting evidence on the following:
(1) the proportion of responses from the 2016 survey which identified underground power as priority issue (detailed quantitative data please); and
(2) the potential benefits and risks of underground power (for example, by what average percentage has underground power increased or decreased the value of properties?)
Can you also please clarify why the CON has chosen to pursue underground power (i.e. what is the source of their mandate for this issue)?

Arakan
asked
over 2 years ago

Thank you for your questions.

In relation to the survey, the information is
contained in the report provided by the Consultants (Catalyse Pty Ltd) who
undertook the survey on behalf of the City. It is a very high level
document and the information and can be found on page 8 and 9 of the
document. The survey question was “Which areas would you most like the
City of Nedlands to focus on improving”. The survey respondents (435)
were representative of the City (see page 18). I cannot tell you the
exact numbers for this question, but page 18 shows the results for the total
survey. The report can be
found on the City’s web site under Your
Council/Publications and Media/Community Surveys. Please refer to the engagement page in Your Voice Nedlands for further information on the survey.

In relation to Question 2: While
the costs are considerable, there is evidence that installing underground power
increases property values. A report by the WA Economic Regulation Authority
(October 2011) found that underground power increases property values by an
average of $9,962.

An
earlier study by the Crawford School of Economics and Government at the
Australian National university found that underground power could increase
property values by 3%. On a $600,000 property this equates to
$18,000.

In relation to Question 3 -Underground power is being pursued as it was identified by the Community
in the 2023 Community Strategic Plan which was adopted by the City in December
2012. This plan is providing the strategic direction for the City to
follow. This plan was developed with extensive community consultation and
with their direct involvement in the development of the priority areas.

Hi, I want to find out where the high voltage lines are in the proposed underground power areas. I am hearing conflicting information where these lines are. Can the council give me a map of which lines are high voltage lines and can't be put underground? thanks.

RichardA
asked
almost 3 years ago

Thank you for your question, however the City is unable to provide you with this information. Western Power should be contacted to request this information.

Do you the council have a majority of ratepayers, potentially subjected to these unfair costs for underground power, approval, for the submission to western power?
Does the council agree that the large transformer at the corner of Boronia ave and Carrington street is unlikely to be underground meaning those residents in that vicinity would have paid for something they will not receive?
Is the council or councillors prepared to discuss these issues and others with the affected ratepayers?
Ian Lowther

Ian Maxwell
asked
about 3 years ago

Ian, thank you for your question. Council will know if the application progresses to the next stage during August 2016. Following this advice, further consultations will occur and issues considered.

I have put in a dome connection and underground power on my property to eliminate the power line from the pole to my house. Will this change the cost of an eventual underground connection for my property?

Helen
asked
almost 3 years ago

Thank you for your question. This is a good idea. It means that you will not have to pay for this seperately should the project progresses.